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| FRIDAY June 15, 2001 Vol 5, # 58 |
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| FRIDAY June 15, 2001 Vol 5, # 58 |
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| Site Search | Support Yellowstone! Discussion $7.95 Internet, Email, More Email Newsletter | |
ROAD REPORT PUBLISHER EDITOR-IN-
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FIRE PREVENTION UPDATE by National Park Service YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (NPS) -- Yellowstone National Park officials have announced that the park is soliciting comments on the issues and alternatives to be considered in an environmental assessment (EA) for a series of mechanical fuels reduction projects at the Lake, East Entrance, and Northeast Entrance areas of Yellowstone National Park. The proposed projects are designed to remove highly flammable fuels surrounding development structures. The proposed fuels reduction project would follow the Yellowstone National Park Structure Protection and Firefighter Protection Hazard Fuels Management Guidelines, an addendum to the Wildland Fire Management Plan that was approved in March 1992. The plan addresses the threat of wildland fire in developed areas, both frontcountry developments and backcountry administrative sites (cabin areas). The goals of the plan are to enhance visitor, resident, and firefighter safety and to protect structures through a proactive program of fuels management. During the winter of 2000-2001, federal wildland fire management policy was reviewed. The review provided clearer direction to federal agencies that protection of human life is an overriding principle. Wildland fire will be used to protect, maintain and enhance resources and, as nearly as possible, be allowed to function in its natural ecological role. Planning must provide for firefighter and public safety, address important values to be protected, be consistent with resource management objectives, and comply with environmental laws and regulations. The three proposed treatment areas are the Lake developed area and the developed areas associated with the East and Northeast Entrances. The proposed areas to be treated will be described by a zone with a perimeter 400 feet from the edge of the outside buildings in each development. Individual project plans will be written that will include maps and all other pertinent data. The proposed acreages to be treated are Lake: 161.3 acres; East: 22.9 acres; and Northeast: 19.2 acres. The proposed treatment would consist of thinning the forest so that the edges of all remaining tree crowns are generally 20 feet apart. In addition, saplings would be thinned to a level that would support the new forest density and some ground fuels would be removed as well. To evaluate alternatives and determine environmental consequences, an environmental assessment will be prepared for these projects. You are invited to comment on the issues and identify alternatives or other concerns that need to be considered in this process. Please send your comments by July 7, 2001 to: Planning Office, Mechanical Fuels Reduction Project, Yellowstone National Park, P.O. Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming 82190. The environmental assessment should be available for public review at the end of July. For additional information, the Wildland Fire Management Plan and Yellowstone National Park Structure Protection and Firefighter Safety Hazard Fuels Management Guidelines documents are available from the Wildfire Specialist, Yellowstone National Park, P.O. Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming 82190. |
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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND COLUMNISTS Russ Finley
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RECLAMATION
OF ABANDONED MINES YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (NPS) -- Yellowstone National Park Acting Superintendent Rick Obernesser has announced that an Environmental Assessment (EA) for reclamation of three abandoned gravel quarry/pits in Yellowstone National Park is available for comment. The public comment period will be open for 30 days, through July 9, 2001. Yellowstone National Park and the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Abandoned Mine Lands Division, are proposing to reclaim and rehabilitate three abandoned gravel quarry/pits within Yellowstone National Park. The Lone Star Geyser and Sedge Creek pits and associated access roads, and the Natural Bridge/Bridge Bay quarry were abandoned between the mid 1950s and early 1970s. They pose threats to public safety, have little revegetation, and are eroding, in some cases into streams. Under the preferred alternative, the Field Director of the Casper, Wyoming, Office of Surface Mines would approve a Federal construction grant for use by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality Abandoned Mined Lands Division to permanently close the pits and restore them to a more natural condition. A copy of the EA may be reviewed at the public libraries in Jackson and Cody, Wyoming and in Gardiner, Billings, and Bozeman, Montana; and at the Yellowstone National Park Research Library in Mammoth Hot Springs. The EA is also available on Yellowstone National Park's web site at www.nps.gov/yell/technical/planning/gravelpit.html. |
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| YELLOWSTONE LAKE TROUT
UPDATE News Brief YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. -- Yellowstone National Park has received a new weapon in the war on illegally-introduced lake trout in Yellowstone Lake. The Park recently acquired a $150,000 commercial gill-netting boat which will be used to catch lake trout. The non-native lake trout have disrupted the natural food chain in the park by preying upon native trout, which are vital food for grizzlies. Yellowstone officials have been intensely seeking to eradicate lake trout for the past several years. |
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| HISTORIC BUS BACK IN
GLACIER NATIONAL PARK by National Park Service GLACIER NATIONAL PARK, Mont. (NPS) -- Secretary of the Interior Gale A. Norton has announced the return of the newly refurbished, historic Red Bus #98 to Glacier National Park, made possible through a unique public/private partnership between the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation and Ford Motor Company. "Two years ago, it seemed that age and mechanical fatigue had overtaken the Red Buses. Today, however, thanks to the commitment and clean technology of Ford Motor Company, the Red Buses will ride again, thrilling visitors and doing an even better job of protecting the environment," said Secretary Norton at this morning's event on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. First introduced into Glacier National Park in 1936, the Red Bus fleet was developed as part of a National Park Service effort to standardize passenger transportation in the National Parks. It is believed to be the oldest fleet of passenger vehicles anywhere in the world, and carried generations of park visitors along the steep and winding "Going to the Sun Road." In 1999, after more than six decades of service, the entire Red Bus fleet was retired because of growing safety and environmental concerns associated with metal fatigue and polluting engines. "Ford recognized that the Red Buses were an important part of the Glacier experience, and we wanted to use technology to protect this valuable National Park heritage," said Janet Mullins Grissom, Ford Motor Company's Vice President for Washington Affairs. "We are committed to developing transportation solutions that protect the environment and delight the public." On hand today to greet the refurbished bus was 86-year-old Dr. Robert Wise, who was the first driver of Red Bus #98 when it entered service in 1936. The Red Bus drivers became as much a part of park heritage as the buses themselves. Affectionately called "jammers" for all the gear jamming of the old style manual transmissions required to navigate "Sun Road," they were the Park's voice, educating visitors about park history, flora and fauna. The restoration of the Glacier Red Bus is just the first in a series of innovative transportation alternatives to emerge from the public-private partnership between the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation and Ford Motor Company. Working with National Park Service staff, Ford will help address Park congestion issues with solutions such as alternative transportation systems, advanced technologies and environmental education. "Ford Motor Company is truly our partner, bringing us both their technological know- how and their deep love of America's National Parks," said Jim Maddy, President of the National Park Foundation, the official non-profit partner of the National Park Service. The buses are owned by Glacier Park Inc., the park's concessioner, who is donating them to the National Park Foundation for their continued operation in Glacier National Park as part of this project. |
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